The Federal Republic of Esga is a huge, safe nation, remarkable for its frequent executions, sprawling nuclear power plants, and keen interest in outer space. The hard-nosed, hard-working, democratic population of 554 million Esgans have some civil rights, but not too many, enjoy the freedom to spend their money however they like, to a point, and take part in free and open elections, although not too often.

The relatively small government is dominated by the Department of Defense, with Law & Order and Industry also on the agenda, while International Aid and Spirituality aren't funded at all. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Esgara. The average income tax rate is 20.3%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The very strong Esgan economy, worth 39.6 trillion Kucars a year, is fairly diversified and dominated by the Arms Manufacturing industry, with significant contributions from Basket Weaving, Woodchip Exports, and Book Publishing. Average income is 71,396 Kucars, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.1 times as much as the poorest.

High school band practice is often crashed by technicolor-clad ravers, it is typical to be greeted by a string of curse words in Esgan restaurants, Occam's razor has sliced to pieces any childhood belief in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, and unemployed school bus drivers photobomb virtual classroom meetings. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Esga's national animal is the Menale, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation.

Esga is ranked 92,750^th in the world and 17^th in Mappy nerds for Most Scientifically Advanced, scoring 103.37 on the Kurzweil Singularity Index.